skip to main |
skip to sidebar
Its been a nice ride. Gone for nearly 2 months from the J-Hole and I know this was one of my favorite off-seasons. Read about some of those experiences in the 12/3 edition of Planet Jackson Hole (download for free at www.planetjh.com). Here's a photo update...Grace Potter & The Nocturnals rocked the Pink Garter Theatre
Too bad I only caught the last hour of the show, but one hell of a finish. My 3rd time seeing band, and they just keep getting better. I dug the psychedelic edge to this show, a very different set than Targhee Fest last summer. I like where they're going. One of the most exciting live bands right now.
68th Annual Fireman's Ball w/ Boondocks
Wow, this is one fun ho-down of a party. Boondocks + horns + hundreds of people swing dancing = good times. Thanks for all who came out to support the Fireman, and us! This will be the last Boondocks gig for a while, but Margo will be touching base in JH every now and then.
John, Bryan, myself, and the return of Andy Peterson on drums will debut as The Docks this month...Dec. 20 at the Stagecoach in Wilson, and Dec. 26-27 at the Silver Dollar. We'll be debuting lots of new material, both originals and covers, and plan to have special guests from time to time.
There were too many good times to cover, so I slacked in telling the world. Rose Creek Festival, held at my sister Mandy and brother-in-law Jim's small farm in Barren County, KY, stands out as a highlight of my time in the home state. I played, Nate played, Mandy and Jim sang tunes too, as around 40 friends and family milled around, ate homemade chili, soup, pies, casseroles, hot dogs. Its exactly how it should of been, moonshine and all.
I was especially excited for my sister Mandy to play 2 songs that she had written because I had heard them before and they're really good. She's a shy but solid player when she wants to be.
The next day we floated the cumberland river in canoes and fished for monster brown trout. We caught a few mini-monsters. The following day, we rode horses around their neighbor's land, and conversed with some country characters that reminded me of how good of a life rural living can offer. When people complain about the economy, or traffic, or gas prices, none of that shit matters when you're staring at a field of glowing autumn trees from horseback. Thoreau could probably explain the euphoria...
Playing at Al's bar in Lexington was a trip, and the CD Release party at the Dragon in Frankfort found my voice to be just about gone. To say that Al's is eclectic is a broad understatement--white, middle class families, older black folk in Nike gear, midgets, prostitutes, pimps, and beggers...need I go on? Nate's buddy Craig joined in on percussion, adding a new element to our sound and creating a cool groove to fuel the fire. Al's was smack in the middle of the ghetto, with a bluegrass focus and plenty of good vibes. Go there. We decided to go back for Nate's 31st just days later.
There are lots of people to thank for generosity and simple, good natured hospitatility. It fuels the music more than they know, more than I know.
"I ain't got no home, I'm just ramblin' round, I'm just a wonderin' worker, I go from town to town." Thanks Woody.
Well, its been nearly 2 weeks since the last post. Its been all about family lately. The longest stint I've had with the fam in eight years actually, so that's been great. The above pic was taken with Pawpaw, my bro Matt, and dad.
I've had a variety of performing opps, including a couple of trips to Nashville (its only an hour from Bowling Green). My first first experience with one of the music city's famed songwriter venues, The Bluebird Cafe, was as interesting outside as inside.
You see, the open mic there is like no other. The venue was to open at 5:30pm. Mom and I rolled in around 4:15, way to early, right? By 5pm there were 20 songwriters in line, by opening time, 40-45 songwriters in line!! I happened to be 4th in line, and man, were there some classic stories being told in the front of that line....some funny, some really sad. Met vagabonds from Vancouver, a mill worker from Princeton, KY, a businessmen from Chicago, a carpenter from St. Louis.
There were certainly some shnazzy Nashvegas outfits, too. Enough snap shirts to make ya wanna say... "snap!" Everyone was nice and all, but it was almost exactly how I imagined it. Should it have been? To keep this long story short, I didn't get to play. I got a "stamped ticket" that guarantees me to play my second time around. We'll see if I make it back this Monday before I cut town.
